The Days I Remembered
by blueabyss16
Summary: I thought we will be together forever. But right from the beginning I never believed in forever. She just came in and destroyed that belief. I know that this is only a terminal thing. Later on all of this will end, and she will leave.
1. PROLOGUE

**The Days I Remembered**

Prologue: _December 9, 2012_

It was our second wedding anniversary. We spent the day reminiscing memories and staring at our pictures since our elementary days up to the recent pictures. And since she forced me to tell stories about my friends, I filled up the blanks for her. I answered her questions and laughed at my blunt way of story-telling.

We moved on to the other pictures, and finally, we stared at our wedding picture. There I saw a girl. She was staring straight at me – at the camera, rather—and was brightly smiling. Smiling as if there wasn't a flash of melancholy in her eyes. Smiling as if it was her greatest day. Smiling as if we didn't share a past. Smiling as if she weren't my ex.


	2. CHAPTER 1

**The Days I Remembered**

Chapter one: _Alice Academy; Year 1, 1998_

"Natsume, wait! I can't keep up… and give me that project!" a girl with auburn hair yelled as she ran after a raven-haired boy.

"It's not my fault you have short legs. And it's also not my fault you didn't pass this in advance." The boy waved a piece of bond paper. "It's already the deadline, you know." With a teasing smirk, he shifted his attention back to running.

Mikan huffed and tried to defend herself. "I know, but it's not my fault Jin-Jin is so fast at discussing lectures. And if I did not pass that project, Jin-Jin will… he will…" she stopped running, looking for the word that flew out of her head.

"He will…?" Natsume stopped running and faced her.

"Annihilate. He will annihilate me."

"Wow. Big word." He said with a raised brow. "And where in the grounds of the Academy have you picked up that word?"

"Hotaru-chan." She replied sheepishly. "She uses that word on me."

"No wonder your nose is bleeding." He said and Mikan's hand found its way to touch the top of her lips, only to find herself falling for his trick.

"My nose doesn't bleed for no reason." She grumbled and glared at Natsume.

"Look here, Little Girl. I will talk to croaky to _not_ to extinguish you. I just really need to show you something."

"He will not _extinguish _me if I give that project to him before dismissal. So give it back."

"Oh come on. I just need to show you something. And besides, it's still lunch."

Natsume grabbed Mikan's hand and dragged her somewhere deeper in the forest. Running and running until they reached a cherry blossom tree. They stopped in front in front of it, still catching their breath as she spoke.

"What are you going to show me?"

"Go up and you'll see."

"You know, I don't trust you when I'm the only one going up." She said but still she climbed. Branch after branch, she heaved herself up. She looked up and was surprised to see unlit lanterns hanging on the higher branches. She stared, clearly stunned. She looked back down and guessing by the smug look on his face, he was pleased with her reaction.

"Did… did you do all this?" she asked.

He leaned on the tree and looked away, but still she heard him say,

"Well, no. I asked someone to put those." He answered, her face fell."_But _I did plan it."

"Thanks for the effort anyway." Mikan grumbled and jumped down. Natsume held her arm to steady her. "But why bother? What's the occasion?"

"Ouch." Natsume said in an attempt to feign hurt, but clearly failed. "You actually forgot, huh? It's only our first year together. It's no big deal."

"First year together? What first year toge—" she stopped in midsentence. Her eyes widening in realization.

"Oh my gosh! Natsume, I'm sorry! I'm reminding myself not to forget but I was so freaked out that I would be passing Jin-Jin's stupid project. I'm so sorry, Natsume. It flew out of my head. I'm sorry." She said while in the verge of tears.

"Hush. It's okay, Little Girl. People tend to forget at times." He said in hopes of soothing her.

"But I don't have anything to give you." She sniffed.

"It's alright. A kiss will do." He meant that as a joke but guessing on her reaction… maybe not.

"On the cheek?" she asked innocently.

"Whatever you like." He shrugged.

Natsume closed his eyes.

She tiptoed closer.

He was actually expecting a kiss on the cheek, but he was surprised that her lips was laid on his. And that was the most magical two seconds in their fifteen years of living. He pulled her in a hug, while the paper laid forgotten on the forest floor.


	3. CHAPTER 2

**The Days I Remembered**

_Chapter two: Second wedding anniversary; December 9, 2012_

"Natsume, are you alright?" a woman in her late twenties asked.

"Huh?" he said, lost for a while in his world. "Yes. Yes, I'm fine. I was just… surprised it's already been two years."

The woman smiled brightly. "I know! I also can't believe it myself. And I bet this child here is just as ecstatic." She rubbed her belly.

He smiled to his wife and kissed her forehead as he—too—rubbed rubbed her stomach.

"Oh I just remembered! What time are we Ruka and his family again?" she asked.

"Actually, I'm expecting one of the maids to call us down." Natsume said and a knock was immediately heard.

"Hyuuga-sama, Nogi-sama has arrived with family." The maid bowed and went out.

He raised a brow at her, as if saying: 'See?'

They went to the gardens and was immediately welcomed by the sight of the always-warm Ruka and his wife, the beloved Ice Queen, Hotaru, to contrast his bright side. Their child—Ai—stared at Natsume with big blue eyes. But even with the blue eyes from Ruka and raven hair from Hotaru, the child has possessed her mother's nature. The stiff but graceful posture and the blank stare was obviously from Imai. He was just silently praying Ai got something more from her father aside from the eye color.

"Natsume! It's good to see you again, buddy." Ruka patted him in the back as if he were a long-lost brother. "How long has it been since we last saw each other?"

"Two years, Ruka." Natsume replied as he patted him back. "Two long years."

"And hello to you too Mrs. Hyuuga. Oh and your child too." Ruka's attention was on his best friend's wife now.

"We brought a gift." Hotaru spoke and thrust a box in Natsume's hands.

"Don't tell me it's an animal." He muttered, and true enough, a black cat's head peeped out when he opened it.

"Don't look at me, Hyuuga." Hotaru snapped. "Blame Ruka."

"Ooh I like cats!" Natsume's wife cooed. "Ai sweetie, would you like to play with it? You could name him if you want."

"Really?" the little girl's interest perked up.

"Yes."

Ai looked expectantly at her mother, who nodded, and she skipped happily next to the woman and walked side by side towards the house.

When the two were finally out of ear shot, the three adults went to a nearby tent. Their freshly brewed tea waiting for them.

"Is she really pregnant?" Hotaru couldn't help but ask.

"Hotaru—" her husband tried to stop her, but was cut off when she started talking again.

"You can answer for him if you want, Nogi." She glared at her husband then turned back to Natsume. "Tell me, is she really pregnant?"

Natsume closed his eyes for a while and sighed. "Yes. Three months."

Hotaru snorted, "Well, congratulations. Really, Hyuuga, I actually thought that after your college graduation you'll look for her. But instead, you courted and married Sumire Shouda! Shouda who was the closest friend Mikan has when I attended college in New York. Seriously, are you fucking kidding me?" Hotaru stood up, not really waiting for an answer.

"Wait Hotaru, where are you going?" Ruka asked.

"I'm going to get Ai. We're leaving."

"_We_?"

"No. Just me and my daughter. You can stay longer if you want." She said, no sarcasm intended.

"I love her." Natsume's voice came.

"Who are you talking about?" was her aimed question.

But he didn't reply.

Ruka excused himself and ran after his wife.

Natsume contemplated whether having a glass—or a bottle—of whiskey instead of tea.

The whiskey won.


	4. CHAPTER 3

**The Days I Remembered**

Chapter three: _"A trip to Mars"; high school year 2; 1999_

"Hello? Natsume, what do you want?" Mikan clutched her phone as she laid her suitcase on her bed.

"_Nothing. I just missed you." _ Came his reply.

"Miss me?"—she giggled—"You were just with me a couple of minutes ago."

"_Yeah, I know. But tomorrow you will leave early." _

"That's because I'm still from Nagoya, of course I have to be up early. That is, if I wanted to go home early."

"_That's why I hate semester breaks." _He grumbled from the other line. And she couldn't help herself but laugh.

"Oh come on. It's never easy to be in a boarding school. It's semester break and I have to see my parents! I miss them too. If I don't go home they'd assume that I got myself pregnant, which I don't to be happening anytime soon. And besides, don't you miss Aoi? Your parents? Aunt Kaoru definitely misses you." Mikan pulled out some of her clothes. Ever since she found out she'd been admitted in Alice Academy at the age of ten, she didn't get the chance to come home frequently because of late Math projects, thus, not having clothes that are really her size at home.

"_Mikan, need I remind you that Aoi is attending Alice Academy too. And… yeah, I sort of miss my mom. Being family friends is burdensome. I know you'd call my mom and Aoi to drag me home."_

"You are quite lucky, you know?" Mikan zipped up her suitcase. " Your family is just here in Tokyo. You could go home everyday if you wanted to."

"_But clearly I don't. I like it better if I'm near you. And at the moment you are far." _

Mikan sat up and stared the wall incredulously, as if the wall was the one she's talking to. "Far? But I'm just at the dorms."

"_But the girls' dormitory is on the other side! Do you have any idea how far? The girls' dormitory is beside the Northern Woods, while the boys' dormitory is beside the Southern Woods." _There was complaining in his tone. And she laughed. She just laughed at Natsume complaining about the distance of the two dormitories, picturing him huffing as he complained.

"You sounded like a child who didn't get a single treat for Halloween." She said and stood up, remembering something. "And speaking of which, what do you want for your birthday?"

"_Birthday? My birthday isn't until the twenty-seventh." _

"I know, but tell me. It's good to know in advance so I could prepare."

Natsume was quiet on the other line for a while. Thinking of what he would ask for a gift. And clearly, what he wanted the most was already his: Mikan. She was enough to lighten his mood. Seeing her was enough to forget he woke up at the other side of bed. Hearing her talk animatedly to their friends was enough to make him smile. Watching her run to her next class was enough to make him pay attention to his own. Feeling her clutch his arm as they walk on the slippery marble floor of the lobby was enough to hold her tight and let the whole school population watch as they pass. Mikan was enough to give him a reason to wake up every day. Mikan was enough that he even agreed to accept the lead role in the school play, knowing that she would be raising posters twice the number than his fan girls' saying, _Natsume Hyuuga, best actor ever! _ So what more could he ask for?

"_A trip to Mars."_

"What?" Mikan was caught off guard.

"_I said I want a trip to Mars."_

"But… b-but that's impossible! How can I give you a trip to Mars? It will cost me a fortune to even _borrow _a space shuttle from NASA!"

"_Make Imai build you one." _He replied nonchalantly.

"That will cost me _twice_!"

"_You know that whatever you give me, I will still accept it, right?"_

"Yeah."

"_Then even if you only got me a first grade homemade card, I would still take it and put it in a time capsule." _

Mikan couldn't bring herself to say a few words. She was happy at how considerate Natsume was. She really was troubled at picking a gift for Natsume. They weren't financially unhealthy; her family was actually business minded people. Her mom was a best-selling author, while her dad owns a huge publishing company. Her mom just chose to have their home in Nagoya, away from the noise of Tokyo. Her dad lives in a condo unit in Tokyo, but every Friday afternoon he goes home to Nagoya. He'll leave for work every Monday mornings.

"_I love you." _ That statement from Natsume was enough to pull her back to her senses.

"I know."

"_I love you." _ He said once more.

"You already said that." She giggled.

"_Yeah, but this time I meant it ten times than the first." _

"I love you." It was her turn to say it. "A hundred times more than you meant it."

And with that, the conversation ended. And so did the day.

* * *

**A/N: THANKS TO THOSE WHO LIKED MY STORY! AS YOU CAN SEE, THIS IS MY FIRST ATTEMPT TO WRITE A FANFIC ABOUT NATSUME AND MIKAN. I DON'T KNOW HOW TO WRITE A NOTORIOUS AND BAD BOY NATSUME HYUUGA YET SINCE ALL I'VE BEEN WRITING ARE _RukaRu_ FICS. I'VE BEEN MORE ACCUSTOMED TO RUKA'S PRINCE CHARMING ATTITUDE SO PLEASE BEAR WITH IT FOR A WHILE SINCE I AM STILL TRYING TO ADAPT.**

**P.S. TO THOSE WHO REVIEWED FROM PROLOGUE TILL CHAPTER TWO, THANKS.**

_**xoxAmuto4everxox:**_** YEAH. I ALREADY READ "MY HAPPY ENDING". IT WAS ACTUALLY THE FIRST FANFIC I HAVE EVER READ, AND IN NO WAY AM I OFFENDED! I WAS ACTUALLY HAPPY THAT YOU POINTED THAT OUT. I _REALLY _HAVE NO IDEA THE BEGINNING WAS SIMILAR. BY THE WAY THANKS TO YOUR REVIEWS! THE CHAPTERS MAY NOT BE AS LONG AS "MY HAPPY ENDING" SINCE I'M CURRENTLY WORKING ON A NOVEL OF MY OWN, BUT I AM WORKING ON IT. MY TIME IS ALSO LIMITED AND MY BRAIN IS TIRED FROM ALL THE STRESS I'VE FACED LATELY. ANYWAY, HERE'S THE THIRD CHAPTER AND I HOPE YOU LIKE IT. MATTERS WILL BE EXPLAINED IN THE LATER CHAPTERS AS TO WHY NATSUME MARRIED SUMIRE INSTEAD OF MIKAN.**

**_mystery555: _YEP! NATSUME MARRIED SUMIRE. AND WHY IS THAT? IT'S FOR ME TO KNOW AND YOU TO FIND OUT!  
**

**HAVE A GOOD READ EVERYONE~**


	5. Chapter 4

**The Days I remembered**

_Chapter four: One of the fights. Alice Academy, high school year 2; 1999_

Everyone was excited. Mikan was one of them, of course. She woke up early and ran her way to her classroom. Tobita Yuu, the class representative and the resident early bird of the class, was surprised to see a panting and sweating Mikan.

"Am I late?" she asked.

"Mikan… actually you are early." He stopped once he saw her face light up. "But _too_ early. The two of are the only ones inside the building aside from the maintenance staff."

"Oh." She stared at the surroundings. And true enough, Yuu was cleaning the chalkledge. The chairs were not in their proper places, the lockers at the back of the room need to be dusted, spider webs hang on every corner of the room. It actually feels like Halloween all over again. It's been two weeks since class went back to their regular routine, but it looks as if the classroom hasn't been cleaned for months.

"Iinchou, is there anything I can do to help?" she asked the representative, who just pushed his glasses back up again.

"Well, I need someone who can help me clean this place." He raised his arms and let it fall back down.

"Is that all?" she asked with a smile.

"Yes. As far as I can tell, that was all I need today."

"Okay!" she brightly grabbed the feather duster and dusted the lockers. Then, she turned to the broom and started to sweep. She wiped the windows as Yuu rearranged the chairs. And while she did most of the jobs—which she insisted—she was still smiling. As if her cheeks doesn't hurt from too much of the effort. She even hummed the entire time! Yuu was a jolly person, but he can never match her feisty attitude. He walked briskly, but Mikan practically skipped all the time. And today was no exception… only; she was more of bouncing than skipping.

"Iinchou, is the scent alright?" Mikan asked, which brought him back to his senses.

"What scent?" he muttered, but got his answer as soon as he inhaled it. Look, she even sprayed scented air disinfectant!

"What's wrong? Is the spring scent not good? I knew I should have bought the winter! Or maybe the others like summer. I have to run to Central Town—"

"Mikan!" Yuu yelled to stop her from rambling more. She paused midair as she was supposed to pick up her bag. Mikan was surprised, she hadn't heard Iinchou raise his voice. Well, not exactly _at her_. But this one caught her off guard. Yuu sighed before he rubbed his forehead—a gesture he made whenever he was stressed out—and looked at her sternly. "Mikan, its fine. The others will love it, I'm sure. You just have to relax. Whatever the occasion today is will go through without you being panick_y _and… overly excited. It's Natsume-kun's birthday, right?"

Mikan nodded.

He sighed again, "Just… sit down for now. Wait until the others come and you can do your usual routine by then."

"I'm sorry, Iinchou." She stared at the floor, ashamed of her ramblings.

"Oh no, no, no! I don't mean it that way! But stay here for a while. I need to do my rounds, since I'm also the batch representative." He patted her shoulder gently and went out of the room.

She sighed. And nodded to herself. She faced the front doors as it opened and greeted her companion. And Anna and Nonoko smiled at her.

"Are you ready for some baking, Mikan-chan?" Anna asked.

* * *

"Anna-chan, I'm sorry but I don't think—"

"Nonsense!" Anna exclaimed, Cutting Mikan off. "Of course he would like it! Right, Nonoko?"

"Umm… I think that's not the problem, Anna-chan. It's just that… I don't think Natsume-kun is… very fond of hearts." Nonoko replied. Staring at the three-layer cake covered in red and pink heart-shaped fondues.

"I think you're right. What will I do? Oh I know! What about a manga-shaped cake? What do you think?" but Anna didn't wait for answers. She just cracked some eggs, separated the yolk from the white. Placed some flour on a big bowl and the next thing they know she was mixing things, here and there.

"So? What do you think?" Anna asked again sometime later.

"It's a good thing you uncle excused us for the day Mikan." Nonoko whispered

"I think, Anna-chan, you could teach me how to make a cake. I mean, tell me what to do before we bake it. Then you and Nonoko can do some… little critters out of candy clay." Mikan shyly suggested.

"Little critters? Oh… you mean little black cats?"

"What else, Anna? It's not as if she would give it to Ruka."

"Nonoko, you heard the captain. We must get some polymer clay in the pantry." Anna dragged the blue-haired girl. Honestly, Anna changes whenever she's in the kitchen. As if she was a soldier out in the battlefield. Or the first mate of the captain in search of a hidden treasure. Or a prima ballerina's instructor, seeking only perfection. Anna changes whenever she holds a knife or a spatula or any kitchen tools. The bubbly pink-haired girl gone, and enters the daughter of Adolf Hitler. She could be demanding, she could be a perfectionist, she could be very strict—tight, even. But that is, if cooking was involved.

Mikan did as she was instructed and waited patiently as the cake was baked. She looked over at Anna and Nonoko. Nonoko seemed to be enjoying from the experience, while Anna concentrated as she carved a cat's body. She just hoped Natsume will like it, since she didn't inform any of their classmates about their absence. But the teachers are aware.

She just really, really, _really _hoped he will like it.

* * *

"Where were you?" a voice grumbled as she entered their _empty _classroom to retrieve her things. She turned her head to the left and there she saw Natsume. His eyes closed but was aware that Mikan was the one who entered the room.

"I had to do somethi—"

He spoke, not letting her finish her sentence."Something? You have to do something for a _whole day_? I'm not any person you can kid, Little Girl."

"I'm not kidding you! Nor am I playing games! I went to do something but I didn't expect it to stretch to hours."

"Is it that important? Is it so important that you already have to skip class because of it?" Natsume opened his eyes and stared directly in her eyes. Mikan willed herself not to cry. By the look on his eyes, he looked like someone who was ready to punch a wall any minute.

"Yes! Because I was so busy preparing my gift for your birthday, I skipped class. That's how important it is!" Mikan lost it and involuntarily raised her voice.

Natsume went still for a moment. Birthday? Damn he forgot it's already the twenty-seventh. No wonder a number of fan girls that were gathered in the Dining Hall were thrice the number than normal. He was so engrossed in thought as to where Mikan might be in the moment, or what could she be doing. He swallowed his pride and went to Hotaru Imai—the best friend—and asked where Mikan is, but the girl just stared at him with her blank face and shrugged.

He stared at Mikan and noticed the tears that were slowly forming, but was more confused when he saw her eyes widen as if realization just hit her.

"Oh goodness, Natsume! Don't tell me you actually forgot your own birthday." Mikan raked her hair in frustration and walked past Natsume, who didn't even move. She gathered her things and walked out on Natsume. But not before whispering, "I sent the cake to the boys' dormitory. I don't know if you'll like it, since it's my first time to bake. You can just claim it at the reception desk there."

"It's alright, Mikan. You can let it out." Nonoko said as she expertly patted Mikan's back.

"Natsume-kun… he better eat that cake! Or else, I'll launch gumballs at the boys' dormitory!" Anna exclaimed.

"This is no time to think about the cake, Anna! And Hotaru-chan, why do you have a gun?!" obviously, Nonoko was the baby-sitter here.

Hotaru had an unmistakable glint in her eyes as she cleaned a _real _.45 Caliber Pistol. "I'll kill that Hyuuga bastard."

Mikan continued to cry her eyes out and was ready to bawl the entire night out, her trash bin was overflowing with wet tissue balls. Her nose as red as Rudolph's, her eyes as puffy as… howalons, and her throat hurting from all the yelling she did; though, she did not curse him. It was still his birthday, after all. She blew her nose on another tissue and threw it, the poor tissue joining the group in the bin. She was about to blow again when she heard a beep from herphone.

She just received a message from Natsume.

_**Hey. Look, I'm sorry about earlier. I was just worried about you. And the cake... I thought you put poison in it, so I let Mochu have a bite. And, well, he was speechless. He said it was delicious. Which really was. Thank you. Peace? **_

Mikan read it. And slowly the corners of her lips tugged up in a smile, and the smile turned to giggles, and the giggles turned to laughs, and the laughs turned to a full madman roar. The beginning of the message didn't matter to her.

"Baka, your snot." Hotaru pointed. But she didn't care. She didn't care if the cake was a delish or Mochu ate it first before he did. What matters the most was the last one word.

"Hotaru, hide that gun. It will no longer be of use."

* * *

**A/N: HEY! HAPPY NEW YEAR! I AM GLAD TO ANNOUNCE THAT I WILL BE GOING TO ADD SOMETHING HERE IN THE AUTHOR'S NOTES. THAT WOULD BE... **

**THE AUTHOR'S APPRECIATION CORNER!**

**REVIEWERS**

_**mystery555: **YEAH... WELL, EMOTION OR NOT, I STILL MEANT THE SAME THING :)  
_

**_AnimeMango:_ **I DON'T KNOW WHAT HAPPENED... BUT I CAN'T FIND YOUR REVIEW. IT JUST KIND OF... VANISHED. I JUST SAW IT IN MY EMAIL.

**STORY FAVORITES**

**_Kiyasarin14_**

_**Sierraisawesome**_

_**Tsumitai Kokoro**_

_**jesusismysavior29**_

_**xoxAmuto4everxox**_

**STORY FOLLOWERS**

_**Kiyasarin14**_

_**Dream girl675**_

_**Sierraisawesome**_

**THERE MIGHT NOT BE A LOT OF YOU GUYS, BUT YOU INSPIRE ME IN WRITING MORE. **

**HAPPY NEW YEAR!**

**12:32 A.M. PHILIPPINE STANDARD TIME**

_**SIGNING**_** _OUT _**


	6. Chapter 5

**The Days I Remembered**

_Chapter five: In a club somewhere in Tokyo City; December 31, 2012_

A blond guy entered the dimly lit and noisy club. Looking around for a familiar face, and when he did, he smiled and made a beeline to the corner.

"Yuu! I haven't seen you since graduation." Ruka gave the guy who was sitting a pat on the back.

"Neither did I. But I keep tabs on you guys. I heard you are a certified Doctor of Medicine." Yuu said with an amazed look on his face. "When I heard the news, I was more than shocked. Who would have thought that the guy who loves animals—whom we thought would be a vet—became a doctor?"

Ruka laughed heartily and nudged Yuu playfully. "And who would have thought that Yuu Tobita would become a medical representative just to follow a certain Nonoko Ogasawara's career path." Ruka looked at him with a sly smile.

"Before we get to that part, I prefer the rooftop Kitsu and Mochu reserved."

"I agree."

Both men stood up and walked their way until they reached the said rooftop. Ruka's smile broadened by the time he laid his eyes on the other two men each having a glass of beer. The two stood up and greeted him with a playful punch on each shoulder.

"Ruka, my man!" Kitsu said, "I can't believe you are still alive! I mean, after all, you married Hotaru Imai."

"Nogi." Ruka corrected. "She is Nogi now."

"Alright, fine. Hotaru Imai-Nogi. Happy now?"

"Better." Ruka grinned.

"Where's Natsume?" Yuu asked. And Ruka's grin—if possible—widened.

"Yuu, you still haven't told me why you followed Nonoko's career path. Is it because Medical Representatives and chemists meet every end of the month for some kind of meeting about a new launching of a medicine, or an urgent meeting about a medicine's side effect?" Ruka looked at the other two who focused solely on their beers, trying to biting their tongues to stop them from laughing.

Yuu sighed and looked at them squarely. His aura suddenly serious. "Guys, you know that you are my friends, right?" the three nodded. "And I hate to break it to you just now, but… Nonoko and I have been dating since ninth grade."

All movements stopped. Ruka stared at Yuu as if the latter grew another head. Kitsu's about-to-be-swallowed beer remained in his mouth, not finding the energy to push the liquids to his esophagus. Mochu spilled the contents of his glass on his pants; the spot where he spilled it was a rather awkward spot for every guy. Ruka tried to say a few words but only managing to squeak out gibberish.

"Hey."

Natsume was the only one who kept his cool. Since he was late and all those excuses. The three—namely Ruka, Mochu, and Kitsu—slowly turned to look at the newly arrived Natsume Hyuuga.

"What's wrong with you, guys?" Natsume asked, irritated by the stares they were giving him. He looked at Yuu and arched a brow. "Would you care to _enlighten _me, Yuu?"

Yuu cleared his throat as Natsume approached and grabbed a glass of cold beer from the tray.

"W-well… I just told them that Nonoko and I have been dating for the past few… fourteen years." It was as if he lost track of time for spending together for that long.

Natsume's glass almost slid from his grasp and stared at Yuu indifferently. Although, a bit of shock was evident. "What? Fourteen? As in since ninth grade? Yuu, you could have married her by the time you graduated college!"

Natsume's outburst was enough to free the other three from their current dumbstruck state, and nodded in agreement. Well, in Kitsu's case, he spat—the liquid from his mouth to the nearest plant pot—yes.

Yuu sighed, as if expecting their reactions. "There's no reason for that nonsense ramblings about asking her to marry me after graduation. Nonoko is a smart girl, and she and I are just trying to be practical. We both need to save up."

"Don't give me that 'we are both trying be practical' excuse." Mochu stood up the bring the whole tray of extremely cold beer to their table. "Every people in the Academy knows you two are both born with gold spoons in your mouth. Well, maybe not. A silver spoon would be more efficient, since Ruka and Natsume are the ones born with gold spoons and trained into perfection of almost everything."

"Guys, we are just being independent." Yuu said grabbing a glass of his own.

"And I bet Nonoko's having a hard time sneezing since we are talking about her." Kitsume drank water this time, probably washing the burning sensation from his mouth away. "When are you even going to pop the question? We are already twenty-nine! And for goodness' sake, we're waiting for the year to end—" he looked at his watch, "—which will take place in about five minutes. Meaning by next year, all of us will celebrate our birthdays of turning thirty! Oh, how much I hate the numbers three and above now!"

Yuu cleared his throat again. "Umm… guys?"

They all looked at him, expectant of what he was about to say. "Nonoko… I… we…" Yuu sputtered, not getting the words out quite right.

"You impregnated her?!" Mochu, Kitsu, And Ruka all yelled in conclusion.

"What? No! what I was trying to say is that… oh, guys I'm so sorry!"

"What are you saying sorry for?"

"Actually, Nonoko and I just got married last September. It was a low profile ceremony. Only the families of both parties are present. Not even the friends were there." Yuu smiled at them sheepishly.

"You know? I already want to dump all the contents of my glass to you." Ruka grumbled.

"Hey! Ten seconds to go, and it's already twenty-thirteen!" Kitsu hollered in excitement. "And with the revelations from Yuu, we will be celebrating three occasions now!"

The others looked at him questioningly, except from Natsume who downed the glass' contents as if it was only water. Mochu was about to ask what those occasions were when Kitsu started to raise his glass and voice.

"—three, two, one! Happy new year! Belated congratulations to Yuu and Nonoko! Happy birthday, Mikan!"

Ruka, Yuu, and Mochu seemed to just remember. January first was—the name in full—Mikan Sakura- Yukihira's birthday. They, too, raised their glasses in the air as they stood up. But they looked worriedly at Natsume who kept up with his cool façade and stood up, raising his glass. His lips mouthed words that was undecipherable to the others' eyes. But Ruka, being his best friend, knew what Natsume whispered to himself. And there was no mistake with the continuous nagging of guilt in his eyes as he stared at the firework-lit sky. Natsume took a sip from the glass again before mouthing the same words,

_Happy birthday, Mikan…_

* * *

**A/N: I WOULD JUST LIKE TO GREET OUR BELOVED MIKAN A HAPPY BIRTHDAY!**

**THE AUTHOR'S APPRECIATION CORNER!**

**REVIEWERS**

_**xoxAmuto4everxox:**_50 BOXES OF HOWALONS WOULD BE A DEE-LIGHT! BUT STAYING TRUE TO MY WORD, I WON'T BE GIVING SNEAK PEEKS TO EVERYONE. NOT EVEN MY BEST FRIEND KNOW WHAT HAPPENED OR WHAT WILL HAPPEN NEXT. (EVEN IF IT MEANS LETTING GO OF 50 BOXES OF FLUFFY HOWALONS ): )

**_Kiyasarin14:_**I LOVE YOU! WHICH I KNOW THAT YOU KNOW ALREADY. REGARDS TO YOUR MOM AND BIG BRO! HINDI KA MAN NAGRE-REVIEW THROUGH FANFIC. NET, YOU REVIEW PERSONALLY. AND THAT WAS ENOUGH. :D

**NEW STORY FAVORITE**

**_Dream girl675_**

**HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MIKAN! MORE BIRTHDAYS TO COME! :D**


	7. Chapter 6

**The Days I Remembered**

_Chapter six: Break a leg; Alice Academy, year 3; 2000_

Hotaru walked inside the Alice Academy Hospital with her head held high.

She stopped at the reception desk for a minute and nodded; shifting the basket she held to the other hand and walked as if she was all too familiar with the building. Stopping in front of a white oak door and let herself in without knocking.

She stared at the patient blankly while the latter replaced her surprised face into a grinning one. The girl on the hospital bed tried to stand up but was stopped immediately by Hotaru's glare.

"Don't move. You can't stand yet, or else the weight on your left leg will have you feeling like it is cemented." She took a glance at Mikan's leg. "This, in technicality of things, is true." She jabbed a finger on the cement-covered limb. "It actually looks like you're leg—only the left leg—gained weight while the rest of your body remained skinny."

Mikan pouted and pointed an accusing finger in the direction of her best friend. "But you sent me away with 'Break a leg.' Instead of 'Good luck.'"

Hotaru merely rolled her eyes as she made herself comfortable on a chair, but not before planting the basket on the table beside Mikan's bed. "When I said that, I didn't expect you to do it _literally_, you idiot. I didn't expect someone to come yelling to our classroom that you went rolling down the main stairs of the library. Seriously, you only told me that you would pass that article and poem for campus paper, and not do acrobatics while making your way down."

"I slipped!" Mikan exclaimed, trying to stand but was only brought down by the weight on her leg. "Whoever left that banana peel will experience my wrath the first thing when I get out of this hospital!"

"Obviously, you would eat your words when you find out that the one who left that peel was just an innocent elementary student."

Mikan huffed and puffed her cheeks. "That… that would be true."

Hotaru's attention was caught by a school paper that was issued for the month. She picked it up and flipped the pages delicately, as if leaving a creased page would turn it to ashes. Her eyes continuously swept from an article to another, stopping once for an article about money being wasted by teenagers nowadays. She grumbled at that. She flipped to another page again and stopped. A proud look flashed for a millisecond in her eyes, and tore her gaze away from the paper and threw it to Mikan.

"I knew you would need my 'Break a leg.'" She stated as-a-matter of fact.

Mikan looked at her in confusion and looked down. Her eyes widened and looked back at Hotaru, then back to the paper again. The mantra was repeated for a few minutes. Her poem was there. It was labeled as the Poem of the Month.

"It… it's published." She said in a whisper. "The article was not published, but the poem… it's here."

"I know, dummy." Hotaru said, resisting the urge to smile. "But what was that for? It's not that you and Hyuuga fought again, did you?"

Mikan smiled sheepishly. "It was for you. And Ruka-pyon."

Hotaru blinked. Say what? For her… and Nogi? It's not like the two of them were… together.

"Hotaru." Mikan grabbed the attention of her best friend. "I know your face was always blank and all, but you always seem to lighten up whenever Ruka-pyon was around. And, well, the past few days you two seem to be a bit… down. I mean, you were literally seething when he enters the room. Bad vibes were actually coming out of your pores." She looked worriedly at Hotaru. "You were alright now, aren't you?"

Hotaru closed her eyes for a second and exhaled "I'm afraid not."

Mikan smiled sadly. Hotaru was just as stubborn as she was, she knows that very well. But that indignant look… well, it's clearly Ruka's fault this time.

-;-

Ruka stared at the school paper before him.

_Yesterday was like a spring in full bloom._

_Flowers were radiant,_

_Showering us with wonderful hues._

Ruka faced Natsume who just arched an eyebrow.

"What happened to her this time?" Ruka asked, facing the others.

"Shut up, Ruka." Natsume grumbled. "I'm trying to be the moral support."

Yuu patted Ruka sympathetically before turning to his own copy if the school paper.

_Yesterday was like summer in full heat._

_In the midst of everything, a debate was executed._

_As was expected, you won._

Ruka furrowed his eyebrows and read those lines again. _Something _was definitely starting to make things reel in his head. He looked at Natsume who raised an eyebrow, this time at the paper. Mochu and Kitsu looked at the paper as if they were reading hieroglyphics. It's not like the words were _that _deep.

_Yesterday was like autumn that was never before seen._

_But instead of having the colors yellow, red, and orange,_

_Mine was white, gray, and black._

"'White, gray, and black.'? I don't think Mikan-chan would prefer those colors. In fact, I think she would rather choose the color Heliotrope than black for describing mourn." Yuu stated. Looking at Natsume with the eyes of a friend—this time, on Mikan's side.

"Don't look at me as if I did something to piss her off." Natsume stated calmly, his gaze not leaving the paper. "Even I, myself, am finding it ridiculous. Last time I checked we haven't fought since Ruka's birthday… and I don't think she would build a world of her own made out of snow."

Everyone went back to reading, looking for an explanation for Natsume's words.

_Yesterday was winter with a strong snowstorm._

_Traces of black leaves were nowhere to be found as they were concealed by ice. _

_Ice that was slowly freezing harder and a brand new wall was starting to form._

_I had not realized they were slowly turning to a puddle._

_Because yesterday, we were friends._

_Yesterday, we didn't care who was wrong._

_Yesterday, we were giving the cold shoulder._

_Yesterday, we glared._

_Yesterday, you snarled._

_Yesterday, I built an empire out of ice._

_And yesterday, you did nothing to shatter it. _

_But those were just yesterdays._

_We were immature. We were young._

_Though I was wounded, though your words stung,_

_I prayed every night we forget those fights._

_Those were just yesterdays,_

_But I hung on every word._

_I would try to change; I would try to make things alright._

_Because I know that you and I were both creatures living in the past._

"It's not about us." Ruka heard Natsume murmur. "It's definitely about us." His eyes swept to Ruka who was staring blatantly at nothing.

"I think… I think it's about Hotaru." Yuu stated, putting down his own copy of the school paper. All their eyes were on Ruka, who seemed to glare at his fists.

"Alright! Alright! It's my fault. Last Monday I called her a greedy little brat." He winced at his own words. "But I was mad! I just… got caught up." Burying his face onto his palms. It took him a minute before looking up at his friends' expectant faces. "I think I have to apologize."

Natsume rolled his eyes at his best bud. "You don't have to _think_ about that, you dolt. It's automatic."

But before the others could not in agreement, Ruka stood up, calling a 'goodbye' behind him and out in the hallways of the boys' dormitory.

"And yet they deny that they were going out, huh?" Kitsu whispered.

Mochu and Yuu only afforded to whiper in return, "Yeah."

-;-

Hotaru read the poem again and again.

If only this girl in front of her did not have a cemented foot, she could have thrown her away. It was so obvious the poem was all about her.

"Hotaru—" Mikan called, but was cut off when the door opened with a panting Ruka. As if he just ran a marathon.

"Crap, where are my manners?" he whispered to himself. "Screw it. Can I borrow her for a second?" Ruka gently pulled Hotaru to the far end corner of the room, not even bothering to have Mikan answer his question. And the girl just turned her head away, smiling.

"What is it you want, Nogi?" she snapped at him.

"Hotaru, look—I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said those—"

"Too bad you already did."

"—things to you. And I swear my conscience was already starting to eat me." He continued as if he wasn't just interrupted.

"I believe you have enough intellectual capacity to _know _unwritten rules never to insult an Imai, Nogi." She glared at him.

"I know, but please! I'll do anything, just forgive me. Anything within my power."

Her ears perked up. "Anything, you say?"

He nodded. "Within my power." He repeated.

A slow smirk crossed her face. "Tomorrow. Girls' dorm, lobby. Six a.m. sharp. Now, I want you out." Hotaru monotonously said as she stirred Ruka and pushed him out.

"Ruka-pyon!" Mikan called. He looked back.

She smiled and said, "Break a leg."

Once the door was closed, Hotaru sat back on the chair and looked up to see Mikan peeking curiously at her.

"What?"

"What are you planning?" Mikan asked.

"Just like you said, _break his leg_."


End file.
